My daughter's school served Swedish meatballs for lunch a few weeks and it was the first thing she talked about fresh off the bus that day. A new and loved food is rare in our house so I had to give it a try. I was shocked at how quick and easy it was to throw together, and how much flavor came out of these few simple ingredients. Check out Marcus Samuelsson's Quick Pickle recipe as well and make them to go with this dish!
For the Meatballs
- 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 lb ground chuck or sirloin
- 1/2 lb ground veal
- 1/2 lb ground pork
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 large egg
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
For the sauce
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup lingonberry preserves
- 2 tbsp pickle juice
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Prepare the meatballs: Combine the bread crumbs and heavy cream in a small bowl, stirrin with a fork until all the crumbs are moistened. Set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Ad the onion and saute for about 5 minutes, until softened. Remove from the heat.
3. In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, veal, pork, onion, honey, and egg, and mix well with your hands. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the bread crumb-cream mixture and mix well. With wet hands (to keep the mixture from sticking) shape the mixture into meatballs the size of a golf ball, placing them on a plate lightly moistened with water. You should have about 24 meatballs.
4. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the meatballs, in batches if necessary, and cook, turning frequently, for about 7 minutes, until browned on all sides and cooke through. Transfer the meatballs to a plate, and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the skillet.
5. Prepare the sauce: Return the skillet to the heat, whisk in the stock, cream, preserves, and pickle juice, and bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the meatballs to the sauce, reduce the heat to medium, and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly and the meatballs are heated through. Serve hot with mashed potatoes, preserves, and pickled cucumbers.